Preacher’s Progress: Candice B. Fureal

Candice B. Fureal: “I admit that I have told fibs and white lies in the past. But will God send me to hell for telling one lie?”

Christian: “Are you saying that your sins are ‘petty’ sins, so you don’t think they should take you to hell?”

Candice B. Fureal: “I guess that’s what I’m saying.”

Christian: “Let’s put it this way. How many lies have you told in your life: one or two, or more?Candice B. Fureal: “I think it would be in the ‘more’ category.”

Christian: “So what does that make you?”

Candice B. Fureal: “Not a ‘liar’—the word sounds too harsh.”

Christian: “Candice, you have told many lies, and even if you told one lie, it makes you a liar.”

Candice B. Fureal: “I can’t see that.”

Christian: “If I commit one murder, it makes me a murderer. If I rob one bank, it makes me a bank robber. If I commit adultery once, it makes me an adulterer. It’s the same with lies.”

Candice B. Fureal: “Okay. That makes sense.”

Christian: “Your sins may seem petty to you, but to God they are many and are very serious. If a judge gave a sentence of a $5 fine, you may conclude that the criminal’s crime was petty. The punishment reflects the crime. However, if you read that a judge has given a criminal five life sentences, you may conclude that the crime was heinous. God’s punishment for sin is everlasting damnation in hell. That shows how our ‘petty’ sins are unspeakably serious in the sight of a holy God.”

Candice B. Fureal: “Okay.”

Christian: “So can you see that you have a multitude of sins, all of which God is aware of, and that you are in danger of being damned forever?”

Candice B. Fureal: “Yes. I can see that now.”

Christian: “Candice, God loved you so much that He became a human being in Jesus Christ to take the punishment for your sins. If you repent and trust in Jesus, because of His death and resurrection, God can now grant you everlasting life.”

Candice B. Fureal: “Can this be for real? What you are saying sounds too good to be true.”

Christian: “If it were the mere word of man, it would be too good to be true. But this is the promise of Almighty God to all who obey Him.”